Construction World July 2017

HOUSING

Gauteng to roll out the GREEN CARPET for urban development

By Matthew Thornton-Dibb | Associate and Environmental lawyer at Norton Rose Fulbright

Development in Gauteng is co-ordinated around its Environmental Management Framework, 2014. The Framework is a strategic document designed to guide sustainable land use management within the province. Its function is to identify geographical areas where certain development activities can be excluded from the environmental impact assessment and the prior environmental authorisation process provided for in the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (NEMA).

On 13 April 2017, a draft notice identifying excluded activities within two geographically defined zones was published for public comment. The notice provides for mandatory standards according to which the excluded activities can be undertaken without prior environmental authorisation. Should the notice come into force, it will fast-track non-polluting urban development in pre- identified areas within Gauteng. Developers rightly bemoan the inflexibility of the environmental authorisation application process. Where a development triggers any of the listed activities published under NEMA, the proponent of the development is required to obtain prior environmental authorisation. The application process may take 197 days for a basic assessment (activities having less significant impact) and 300 days for scoping and environmental impact assessment (for activities having more significant impact). Brownfields developments, residential, and commercial developments usually have little material environmental impact, and those impacts attributable to dust and stormwater emissions, and waste management can

be managed through compliance with general standards. However, the inflexible process currently in force does not allow for exemption from prior environmental authorisation where a listed activity is triggered. This leads to unnecessary time and costs spent on obtaining environmental authorisation as a check-box exercise. The proposed exclusion of developments triggering certain listed activities within pre- determined geographic zones will address this issue. These exclusions include the development of bulk liquid transportation pipelines and electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure; the clearance of land for developments associated with various land uses (ie retail, residential, industrial, and commercial); and develop- ments requiring the storage and handling of dangerous goods such as retail fuel stations. Exclusions will only apply in respect of Zones 1 and 5 (as indicated in the Framework). • Zone 1, known as the Urban Development Zone, comprises those areas of Gauteng where streamlining of urban development • Zone 5, known as the Industrial and Commercial Focus Zones, comprises those areas of Gauteng where streamlining of non-polluting industrial and large-scale commercial activities is required. activities is necessary to promote infill development, densification, and concentration.

This will result in significant time and cost savings for affected projects, and will open up Zones 1 and 5 as preferred development areas within the Gauteng province. The exclusions will not apply to developments extending outside the boundary of Zones 1 or 5, or to any activity that is directly related to prospecting and mining. While the exclusions will do away with the need to obtain prior environmental authorisation, it does not completely de-regulate affected developments. Proponents of affected developments would need to apply to register the developments with the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. When requesting registration, a developer must undertake to comply with the prescribed environmental management standards. These standards operate as a non-negotiable environmental management programme for affected developments, and relate to environmental management issues such as the protection of air quality, storm water management, hazardous substances management, and the protection of water resources and biodiversity. Developers will be obliged to design, construct and operate affected developments in compliance with the minimum prescribed standards. The notice, should it come into force, will be a welcome relief to developers looking to reduce development costs in the current economic climate. 

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CONSTRUCTION WORLD JULY 2017